Multiple trench digger and soil bagger

ABSTRACT

An automotive vehicle carrying multiple juxtaposed trench diggers depending rearwardly therefrom for digging a deep trench behind said vehicle as the latter travels, said trench diggers discharging soil excavated from said trench upwardly over and onto a screen-covered power-vibrated hopper carried on said vehicle, from which hopper screened soil freely flows through multiple gate controlled bag filling chutes which are attended by a crew of men walking alongside the vehicle.

United States Patent Kenneth S. Garden lnventor 130 West Owens Ave.., Las Vegas, Nev. 89030 Appl. No. 780,714 Filed Dec. 3, 1968 Patented Aug. 3, 1971 MULTIPLE TRENCH BIGGER AND SOIL BAGGER 4 Claims, 9 Drawing Figs.

U-S. CL 299/7, 37/86,171/l4 Int. Cl E02i 5/06, E02f5/l0 Field of Search 299/7; 37/86;17l/l4,l5,l6,130,13l

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 965,667 7/1910 Thompson 171/15 X 1,143,446 6/1915 Sevcrson.... l7l/14 2,027,840 l/1936 Rodin 171/15 2,069,712 2/1937 Penote 37/86 Primary ExaminerErnest R. Purser Attorney-Dana E. Keech ABSTRACT: An automotive vehicle carrying multiple juxtaposed trench diggers depending rearwardly therefrom for digging a deep trench behind said vehicle as the latter travels, said trench diggers discharging soil excavated from said trench upwardly over and onto a screen-covered power-vibrated hopper carried on said vehicle, from which hopper screened soil freely flows through multiple gate controlled bag filling chutes which are attended by a crew of men walking alongside the vehicle,

Pmun-inms 3911 I 9,599,994

SHEET 1 [If 2 INVENTUR.

Kym [r 5. 64/?051/ BY Q Aim/we) PATENIED AUG 3 i971 SHEET 2 BF 2 MULTIPLE TRENCII DIGGER AND SOIL BAGGER SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is especially provided to enhance the capacity of military engineering forces in the field in the construction of entrenchments for use by infantry.

It is a particular object of provide an automotive earthworking tool which will by machine power excavate a deep trench relatively rapidly and will screen and deliver the excavated soil into bags at multiple bagging stations provided on the tool to facilitate said bags being closed, and being then manually deposited on opposite sides of 'the trench, as said bags are filled and closed, thereby minimizing the amount of labor demanded of the ground crew in manually utilizing said soil in building breastworks alongside said trench.

Another object is to provide such a novel automotive trench digger and soil bagger wherein nonbaggable elements ex cavated in digging a trench are automatically separated from the soil and soil lumps in the latter are pulverized as the soil is conducted to the soil-bagging stations of the invention, thereby eliminating the necessity for tool shutdowns and assuring a continuous flow of soil to the chutes.

Heretofore, transversely stepped trenches such as required in field fortifications and in the laying of public utility pipelines have been excavated largely by manual labor.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a heavy-duty power earth-working tool for power excavation of a step trench by a single passage of the tool along the trench therebyexcavating the entire trench with a single tool operation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic side elevational view of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken'on the line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 44 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a detailed enlarged sectional view taken on line 5-5 of FIG. I.

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged detailed side elevational view of a soil delivery chute of the invention.

FIG. 8 is a front elevational view of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the hydraulic power and control system of the invention.

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary end elevational view of the vehicle of the invention showing the manner of retractingthe bag-supporting platforms when not in use.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring specifically to the drawings, the invention is there shown as mounted on a vehicle which is preferably a heavy, automotive military field vehicle such as the conventional Army ammunition carrier generally referred to as the Army mule".

A soil hopper 22 is supported at 24 over the bed of the vehicle 20. The hopper 22 has sloping sides terminating in a bottom 26. The hopper 22 is completely covered by a wire mesh screen 28 to prevent rocks or other large elements such a roots from clogging the bagging mechanism. The screen 28 slopes forwardly so that rocks or the like will be carried along the screen and discharged from the forward end thereof onto laterally and downwardly exten'ding open troughs 30 and 32, these rejected elements thus being discharged at opposite sides of the vehicle. A shallow pan 34 (FIGS. 1 and 4) is mountedin the hopper 22 in a manner to deliver soil onto the, hopper bottom 26. Dual split type augers, 36 forwardly and 38 rearwardly, force feed sifted soil to a pair of front delivery chutes 40 and back chutes 42. While only four such chutes are shown, it is to be understood that a larger number of chutes might advantageously be employed in the invention. Manually operated gates 44 are provided in said chutes for controlling the soil discharged from each of said chutes into bags 46 which 'are supported'on collapsible side platforms 48 which are pivotally hung from the bed of vehicle 20. Hooks 50 are provided on the sides of the delivery chutes to temporarily hold the bags 46in position during the filling operation. As each bagis filled by one of said chutes, the gate 44 thereof is closed, the bag is removed from the hooks 50, the neck of the bag is then tied and the filled and tied bag is pulled from the vehicle and immediately utilized by a crew of men working on the groundin the formation of breastworks alongside the trench being dug by the invention.

The augers 36 and 38 are carried by a horizontal shaft 52 which is'secured at the forward end to and driven by a hydraulic motor 54 suitably supported on vehicle 20 are connected at 56 to the general hydraulic system of the invention which is diagrammatically illustrated in FIG. 9. The rear end of the shaft 52 has a secure bearing support 58 as shown in FIG. 6. A projecting end of the shaft 52 has a pulley 60 which is connected by a belt 62 to a vibrator 64 pivotally attached to a bracket 66 provided on the hopper 22. The hopper and associated parts are thus continually vibrated so as to cause a continual flow of screened soil to the bagging chutes aforesaid;

Multiple trench diggers 67 are mounted in parallel closely spaced relation on the rear end of the vehicle 20. While the number of these diggers varies from two up, three such diggers are shown in the drawings as being ordinarily preferable. A multiple of vertical uprights 68 are mounted on the vehicle 20 and at their upper ends provide bearings 69 for a digger support and drive shaft 70. This shaft is driven through a chain and sprocket mechanism 72 connecting with a hydraulic motor 74 receiving hydraulic fluid through pipe 76 and carried by an arm 78'fixed to an outer vertical upright 68.

' Each trench digger 67 has a pair of spanner plates 80 which bear at their upper ends on shafts 70 and pivotally support an idle sprocket 80a between their lower ends. Fixed on shaft 70 between'upper ends of plates 80 is a digger drive sprocket 80b. An endless chain 81 encircles sprockets 80a and 80b and carries and endless series of digging buckets 82.

When the invention is in operation, shaft 70 is constantly rotated by hydraulic motor 74 and shaft 52 is constantly rotated by hydraulic motor 54. This causes the digger 67 to dig a' trench 83 and discharge the soil removed from the trench onto the screen 28. It also causes this screen to vibrate with the hopper 22, the fine soil thus passing through the screen into the hopper and gravitating into the bagging chutes 40-42 I when the gates 44 of these may be manually opened by the operators thereof who are standing on the ground alongside of the vehicle 20.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 9, each trench digger 67 is pro vided with a hydraulic control cylinder 84 by which the angular position of that digger about shaft 70 may be controlled by the driver of vehicle 20 by a valve 86. There are thus three of these valves which are located on vehicle 20 within reach of the driver who sits behind the vehicle steering wheel 87. Through these valves, the driver may cause any of the diggers 67 to decrease or increase its angle of attach on the soil therebeneath or to remain in its existing angular relation with shaft 70. Through these controls, the three diggers 67 may be set to dig at the same depth and this depth may be selected to be anywhere between surface level and the maximum depth to which the diggers can reach. On the other hand, one or more of the diggers may be elevated to above surface level while the remaining digger or diggers may alone be depressed into digging relation with the soil.

Finally, this control permits the diggers to be lowered to dig at successively deeper levels from one side of trench 83 to the other to produce a trench with a transversely stepped bottom.

While the hydraulic system of the invention is conventional and is therefore shown diagrammatically in the drawings, it preferably includes an oil reservoir into which all return lines empty and which supplies oil to a pump 91 which may be driven by the prime mover of the vehicle or it may be driven by a special engine provided for this purpose. The preswhen the pressure of this exceeds a given maximum.

One reason why'trenches embodied in field fortifications have heretofore been largely dug by hand is the necessity for making frequent changes indirection in the line of the trench so as' to obviate. the oecupants'of the trench being exposed to enfilading fire. One or thegreat advantages of the present invention which has been designed with particular reference to its use in the construction of field fortifications, is that by the ready hydraulic control of the elevation and depression of the respective diggers 67 of the invention, the driver of the vehicle 20 may at any point in the operation thereof quickly elevate all of the diggers above the surface of the ground, execute a .turn of any desired angle and then again lower thetrench diggers 67 while they are'set in motion to themselves in the soiLwhereby they immediately start digging a new section of the trencli'which will be related at a desiredan gle with the section just previously dug. The removal of earth to properly connect these adjacent sections of trench dug at angles to each other can be accomplished by a relatively small amount of labor and this can of course be left to the'skill ,of the ground crew cooperating with the screw operating the vehicle 20.

As above pointed out, the present invention is adapted to be operated with the diggers 67 adjusted hydraulically to dig to successively greater depths from one side of the trench 83 to.

the other side thereof so as to produce a bottom in the trench which is transversely stepped. The importance of this for military use is seen in the fact that field entrenchments are often required to be thus dug so that the higher steps will support infantrymen manning the trench for defense of the same while thedeepest step in the trench, which is always to the rear side thereof, accommodates men walking lengthwise in the trench without the necessity of them crouching enemy fire.

While the invention is primarily designed for military use, the multiple trench digger feature of the invention is adapted for application in the digging of stepped trenches such as are required in municipal street engineering projects where multiple pipelines are buried, the trench for accomplishing this providing a separate step on which each of the multiple lines is laid.

One of the main reasons for multiple trench diggers being used in the present invention is that the individual diggers will be small enough to cut through any tree roots that might be in the path of the trench. In a like manner the narrow diggers used in the present invention tend to deflect any large foreign matter such as a large rock or boulder off to one side, refusing to carry it to the top of the conveyor, and leaving said rock or boulder at the base of the trench.

it is also to be noted that in the present invention a narrow wall of earth is untouched by the diggers 67 in the spaces lying between the adjacent diggers. These narrow walls of soil will be caused to tumble to the base of the trench by the vibration transmitted from the hopper 22 through the vehicle 20 to the diggers 67. When the thin walls thus crumble and are converted into loose soil in the bottom of the trench, this soil is picked up by the diggers and discharged at the upper end of the latter into the hopper 22.

to be protected from It is further pointed out that the entire disclosure of the invention is relatively diagrammatic in character. For instance the diggers 67 are, for the sake of simplicity, represented as digging on the downward travel of the buckets whereas as 'under manycircumstances it might be preferable to accomwith this particular ty of vehicle.

The drawings an foregoing specification may be considered a's illustrative only of the principles of the invention.

Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and, accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

lclaim:

1. In combination:-

a heavy duty automotive ground supported dirigible vehicle;

trench digger means mounted on said vehicle and depending rearwardly therefrom;

means powered from" said vehicle to actuate said trench digger means andlower the same into deep digging relation' with the ground. 'to excavate. soil therefrom and discharge the same upwardly over said vehicle, as the latter travels, to produce a trench behind said vehicle;

and

mechanism provided on said vehicle for receiving said soil discharged by said trench digger means and delivering it into individual bags as said vehicle is travelling, for deposit of the filled bags alongside said trench to build breastworks on opposite sides of said trench coextensive therewith.

2. A combination as recited in claim 1, wherein said mechanism includes a power vibrated screen which initially receives the soil discharged by said trench digger means, said screen separating baggable from nonbaggable material and discharging the latter laterally from said vehicle.

3. A combination as recited in claim 2, wherein said mechanism includes a hopper on which said screen is supported, and with which it is vibrated by means for vibrating said screen; and

a multiple of individual bagging chutes provided on said hopper, each chute having a manually controlled gate and means for hanging the bag therefrom for filling of the latter by an individual drew member so that bagging may be effected contemporaneously at each of said chutes as said vehicle travels.

4. A combination as recited in claim 3, wherein platform means is provided on said vehicle beneath said bagging chutes to support the weight of a bag as it is being filled with soil from any of said chutes so as to facilitate a ground crewman walking alongside said vehicle con- 

1. In combination: a heavy duty automotive ground supported dirigible vehicle; trench digger means mounted on said vehicle and depending rearwardly therefrom; means powered from said vehicle to actuate said trench digger means and lower the same into deep digging relation with the ground to excavate soil therefrom and discharge the same upwardly over said vehicle, as the latter travels, to produce a trench behind said vehicle; and mechanism provided on said vehicle for receiving said soil discharged by said trench digger means and delivering it into individual bags as said vehicle is travelling, for deposit of the filled bags alongside said trench to build breastworks on opposite sides of said trench coextensive therewith.
 2. A combination as recited in claim 1, wherein said mechanism includes a power vibrated screen which initially receives the soil discharged by said trench digger means, said screen separating baggable from nonbaggable material and discharging the latter laterally from said vehicle.
 3. A combination as recited in claim 2, wherein said mechanism includes a hopper on which said screen is supported, and with which it is vibrated by means for vibrating said screen; and a multiple of individual bagging chutes provided on said hopper, each chute having a manually controlled gate and means for hanging the bag therefrom for filling of the latter by an individual drew member so that bagging may be effected contemporaneously at each of said chutes as said vehicle travels.
 4. A combination as recited in claim 3, wherein platform means is provided on said vehicle beneath said bagging chutes to support the weight of a bag as it is being filled with soil from any of said chutes so as to facilitate a ground crewman walking alongside said vehicle controlling the flow of soil to said bag, shutting off said flow when the bag is filled, disengaging the bag from said chute, tying the neck of said bag, and depositing said bag laterally from said platform onto the immediately adjacent ground area. 